Matip, born in the German town of Bochum, has been with Schalke since the age of nine but is excited about the chance to play in the Premier League under Klopp, who enjoyed huge success in Germany with the Royal Blues' arch-rivals Borussia Dortmund.

"Liverpool are a wicked club, and naturally it does not hurt that I already know the coach," Matip, who scored in a 2-1 win over Klopp's BVB in 2014, told German tabloid Bild.

"I had the feeling that Klopp and Liverpool are ideal for me, but the thought of leaving was naturally not easy for me."

According to Bild, Matip is set to receive a signing-on fee of €5 million and will earn around €7m per season at Liverpool.

Schalke sporting executive Horst Heldt said on Monday that the club "were not able to influence factors that would tip the balance in the end," suggesting that Matip had been determined to move to England.

He said: "Joel wanted to make a landmark decision for his career. We can't switch into the Premier League with Schalke -- he would have stayed had that been the case."

Matip made his Schalke debut in November 2009, when he netted the equaliser in a 1-1 draw at Bayern Munich.

He has since scored a further 22 goals for the club, predominantly from set-pieces, and has made a total of 241 competitive appearances, with 181 in the Bundesliga.